DURHAM, N.C. – The Duke women’s swimming and diving team will be represented at the NCAA Division I Swimming and Diving Championships for the fourth time in five years, as juniors Lauren Weaver and Christine Wixted head to Indianapolis, Ind., to compete at the championship meet for the first time in their respective careers. The NCAA Championships get underway Thursday, March 21 and continue through Saturday, March 23 at the IU Natatorium and the IUPUI Sports Complex in Indianapolis.

Preliminaries will begin at 11 a.m. EST each day of competition, followed by the finals session at 7 p.m. EST. Friday and Saturday’s finals sessions are both scheduled to be broadcast live on ESPN3, while the entire championship will also be aired on tape delay Wednesday, March 27 at 8 p.m. on ESPNU.

Weaver is qualified to swim the 50-yard freestyle at the NCAA Championships after clocking the 22nd-fastest time in the nation at last month’s Atlantic Coast Conference Championships in Greensboro, N.C. The Cincinnati, Ohio native’s time of 22.27 in the 50 freestyle preliminaries broke the previous school record in the event, and earned her a spot in the championship final, which saw her take third overall at 22.34 for the first All-ACC honors of her career. Weaver also set a new program record in the 100 freestyle at the ACC Championships with a time of 50.18.

Following a standout performance at the ACC Championships, Wixted has been invited to compete in three events at the NCAA Championships – the 100 and 200 breaststroke as well as the 200 IM. She registered the 19th-best time in the country in the 100 breaststroke preliminaries at the conference championships, tapping the wall at 59.95 to surpass her own school record. The native of Greenwood Village, Colo., went on to finish second overall in the event final, and took second in the 200 breaststroke final at 2:10.19 for another program record and podium finish. Now a four-time All-ACC performer in the breaststroke events, Wixted is seeded 22nd in the 200 breaststroke and 59th in the 200 IM (1:59.55).

The top eight finishers in each event at the NCAA Championships will earn All-America First Team honors, while places nine through 16 will garner honorable mention All-America accolades.

For more information about the 2013 NCAA Division I Women’s Swimming and Diving Championships, visit the championships homepage at http://www.ncaa.com/championships/swimming-women/d1. Fans can also follow the Blue Devils on Twitter (@Duke_SWIM_DIVE) for live updates throughout the championship meet.